Method for enabling online gamblers to become the &#34;house&#34; and play against other users

ABSTRACT

A method for enabling online gamblers to play with or against other gamblers, where a qualifying gambler acts as the “gambling house” for a limited time period, and is given the “house” odds. As an example, Player X (after fulfilling several conditions) may become the “house” or the “casino”, and other users will be able to play against Player X&#39;s casino rather then against the official “house” (this refers to the site owner, presumably operating with necessary licenses etc. using the casino software). In this way, qualifying players who become the “house” will benefit from “casino house” odds.

FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to a method for online gambling.

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] Online gambling typically incorporates similar methods to that ofoffline gambling, with the traditional setup whereby the “casino house”(a regular licensed casino) plays against one or more players. Thechallenge of gambling, wherein players risk something of value, such asmoney, for the chance of winning a prize, is usually predicated on theknowledge that a certain risk is inevitable, yet there are reasonableodds for winning. Moreover, players ordinarily demand to know that suchodds are maintained by the “casino house”, and as such there is acertain trust in the fairness of the casino or house.

[0005] The field of online gambling, however, is often suspected ordistrusted by players and potential players, for compliance with suchstandards of honesty and reliability. This is not necessarily owing to anegative history and bad reputation of individual gambling sites, butdue to the fact that players are alone, and cannot see the house or theplayers in the house. In some online casinos there is a multi playerfeature where players can see other players' hands. What the players cannever see or check is the random number generating system or the gameengines, and even if these are checked and verified by auditors, thereis nothing stopping the casino owners from making changes after thegames are audited. To effectively check the odds, one would have to runcontinuous check programs on the software on a real time basis—which isimpractical. As such, despite promises from the house that fairnessreins, this is something which can often not be verified by players.

[0006] There is thus a widely recognized need for, and it would behighly advantageous to have, a system that can enable “casino houses” tooffer guaranteed odds to players on casino games, and such that userscan trust in the odds offered by the “house” and benefit from them, inorder to provide users with additional incentive to gamble.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] According to the present invention there is provided a method forenabling online gamblers to gamble with other gamblers, where a gambleracting as the “house” is given the house odds using the same hardwareand software that is used by the “casino” when it operates as the house.As an example, Player X (after fulfilling several conditions) may becomethe “house” or the “casino”, and other users will be able to playagainst Player X's casino rather then against the official casino“house” (this refers to the site owner, operating with necessarylicenses etc. using the casino hardware and gaming engine software ithas developed). In this way, qualifying players who become the “house”will benefit from “casino house” odds.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0008] The present invention relates to a method for gambling online,such that users play against other users, and certain qualifying userscan be given the odds of the “casino house”.

[0009] The following description is presented to enable one of ordinaryskill in the art to make and use the invention as provided in thecontext of a particular application and its requirements. Variousmodifications to the preferred embodiment will be apparent to those withskill in the art, and the general principles defined herein may beapplied to other embodiments. Therefore, the present invention is notintended to be limited to the particular embodiments shown anddescribed, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with theprinciples and novel features herein disclosed.

[0010] Specifically, the present invention can be used to enable usersto become the “house”, and in this capacity, to play with improved oddsagainst other players.

[0011] The principles and operation of a system and a method accordingto the present invention may be better understood with reference to thefollowing description:

[0012] There are three alternative ways of giving a player the odds ofthe “house”:

[0013] 1. Player X is able to offer and open a casino table (e.g.roulette, blackjack etc.) and be the “house” and dealer, or to view aslot machine while another user plays with it against him/her. Whilebeing the “house”, Player X enjoys the same casino odds as the casinohouse does and will profit from the slots and/or table profits as ifs/he were operating the “casino house”.

[0014] In actual fact the “casino house” will continue to operate andadminister the casino for the players. The casino house charges acommission as a percentage (say 1-1.5%) of the $ turnover of the gamesplayed between Player X and other players.

[0015] 2. Player X will be able to offer and open a casino table, andseveral participants will be able to participate at the same time in thegame against him/her on a multiplayer basis.

[0016] 3. Player X will be able to offer and open an entire casino,working for him/her, with a multiplayer capability.

[0017] The “casino house” operates its online casino as usual, but withan addition. Each time a player plays a round of any game in one of the“casino house's” online games, irrespective of the amount wagered, s/heearns credit points. After earning a specific amount of credit points(e.g. 1000), the player will qualify to be the “house” and will be ableto offer and open casino games as the “house” and invite other playersto play against him/her. Other users who will enter the casino will beable to choose against which “house” they would like to play i.e. theymay choose to play against other players who have qualified to be the“house” or they may choose to play against the “casino house”.

[0018] For example: if a user wants to play blackjack, s/he will get ascreen with the available blackjack tables and their respectivequalified owners who are the “house”, the screen will also show themaximum betting limits applicable to such a table as each table owner(or “house”) will be limited by different betting limits depending ontheir previous playing history, current cash position and qualifyingpoints. In addition the user may also choose to play against the “casinohouse”.

[0019] Player X who has opened the table will have a dealer's screenview of the game, whereas the other player will see the regular screen.

[0020] During the time that Player X is operating as the “house”, pointswill be deducted from her/his points total for every round played, inthis way Player X cannot remain the “house” for ever. Once Player Xbecomes unqualified s/he becomes a regular player again and can playagainst the “casino house” or against other players who have qualifiedto become the “house” thus accumulating new points to again qualifyhim/her to become the “house”.

[0021] The accumulation and deduction of points may not be influenced bythe players' winnings or losses while a player is operating as a playeror as a “house”. However, in additional embodiments of the presentinvention, these factors may be relevant in determining a player'sstatus.

[0022] When a game is performed each of the players see the cards andthe action going on from their point of view.

[0023] Each of the players have their own history pages and their ownaccount history and details.

[0024] The casino house charges a commission as a percentage (1-1.5%) ofthe game turnover between the players for transactions when the “casinohouse” is not the house.

[0025] In order to qualify to become the “house” or the casino a playerwill have to deposit a minimum amount of money into his account at the“casino house” and will be required to play a certain amount of gamerounds as a player against the “casino house” (the regular house) oragainst other players who have qualified to be the “house”. The gamingengine software and hardware used in either case is identical. Theplayer will accumulate credit points based on his/her activity and willhave a certain amount of money in his/her account based on whetherhe/she has won or lost while playing.

[0026] Once the player qualifies to “be” the house the player maydeposit or withdraw funds from her/his account, leaving a certainbalance in his/her account which the player may risk while operating asthe “house”. Before being activated as the “house”, the player who hasqualified will have to confirm (for example, by email and fax, ordigital/personal signature) that s/he has deposited a certain amount ofmoney into her/his account at the “casino house” and is willing to riskit while operating as the house.

[0027] The qualifying players will have to communicate (e.g. fax a copyof their credit card and a copy of an ID with a picture) relevantfinancial and identity data to the system.

[0028] Qualified players will be able to place stop losses on theiraccount (i.e. if a player has $1000 in her/his account, other playersmay play against him/her while s/he is not online and s/he may wish tostop being the “house” if her/his total balance has reduced below $500,for example).

[0029] Similarly a player may place other conditions like stop being the“house” once s/he has won 500.

[0030] The system calculates the limits of bets for every round, whichthe playing player may bet against the qualifying player's “house”according to the qualifying player's cash balance and in line with thequalifying player's instructions.

[0031] Machine (e.g. slot machine) relating betting limits and prizesare also adjusted in accordance with the qualifying player's cashbalance and instructions.

[0032] All Jackpots will be maintained and paid by the system (i.e bythe “casino house” and will be common jackpots to all of the activity inthe system. For example, if a jackpot accumulates in the Caribbean Pokergame, the “casino house” will run a common jackpot for all of theCaribbean Poker games being played in the system whether played againstthe “casino house” or against a qualifying player's “house”. The systemwill deduct a commission or a percentage of the jackpot and will pay outthe jackpot to the first winner irrespective of who the player hasplayed against.

[0033] In stage 3—For a user/player to qualify to be the “casino” and beable to offer all of the casino games at once, s/he will have to deposita larger amount of money as insurance. At a later stage the user willhave the ability to customize her/his casino, which means control oncolors, sizes, kind of cards, kind of chips and general look and feel ofthe casino, table or games s/he wishes to offer while operating as the“house”.

[0034] Getting Over the Matching Problem, and the Logic of BettingAgainst Other Players:

[0035] When a qualifying player has the ability to become the “house”and host other players then the credibility of the gaming softwareand/or hardware is not questioned since it applies to the “casino house”or Player X's “house” in the same manner. It is expected that someplayers may feel more comfortable to play against other players.

[0036] When a player plays against the “casino house” s/he doesn't haveto pay a commission, but when s/he plays against another qualifyingplayer's “house” then s/he or the qualifying player (depending on whohas won a round) will have to pay the “casino house” a commission foroperating maintaining and administering the plays and the system.Qualifying Players operating as the “house” will be prepared to pay thiscommission since they will be enjoying and benefiting from better oddsi.e. “house” odds. Playing players will be prepared to pay thiscommission since the “casino house” offers more credit points whenplayers play against each other, which means that players who have thedesire to become the “house”, can achieve this goal much quicker byplaying against other users.

[0037] A player cannot be the “house” forever. For each game that theplayer participates as the “house” or as the casino, s/he loses creditpoints. When the player's credit points are lower than a predeterminedminimum qualifying limit, s/he becomes a regular player again, and hasto earn more credit points to qualify again to become the “house”,irrespective of the player's winnings or losses as the “house”.

THE GAMES. Black Jack, Caribbean Stud Poker, Baccarrat, Craps etc.

[0038] Stage 1.

[0039] Player X offers a blackjack table as the “house”. S/he views thetable from the dealer's perspective.

[0040] The system will automatically calculate Player X's table limitsand the player's betting limits before each round according to PlayerX's current cash balance and according to his/her other instructions.

[0041] In Caribbean Poker the jackpot will be kept in escrow by the“casino house” (i.e. by the system) and the jackpot portion of thewinnings will be paid out (after commissions) by the “casino house” tothe first winner, in accordance with the rules irrespective of whetherthe player has played against the “casino House” or against a qualifyingplayer's “house”.

[0042] Stage 2.

[0043] Player X will be able to become the blackjack “house”. S/he willview the table from the dealer's perspective.

[0044] Several users will be able to participate at the same timeagainst Player X. The betting limits will be calculated and dividedbetween the participants according to Player X's cash status andinstructions before each round. The table will be limited to a maximumof 4 players.

[0045] When a multiplayer event occurs, each user will see her/his sideof the table from his or her position at the table and will see thecards of one or more of the other players.,

[0046] Player X will see all the users all at once from the dealer'sperspective.

[0047] Caribbean Poker Jackpots are treated same as above.

Roulette

[0048] Stage 1.

[0049] Player X will be able to offer a roulette table as the “house”.S/he will see it from the dealer's perspective. Player X's table limitsand the players' betting limits will be updated automatically beforeeach round according to the Player X's cash balance and instructions.

[0050] Stage 2.

[0051] Several people will be able to place their chips.

[0052] Each user will have a view of all the chips on the table.

[0053] The betting limit will be divided equally between the regularparticipating Players.

[0054] A plurality of participants, optionally with a chosen maximumnumber, will be allowed.

Slots Machines & Video Poker.

[0055] Stage 1

[0056] Player X and the regular playing player will have the same viewof the game.

[0057] The difference will be in the cash and account balances. Player Xwill see her/his balance, and the regular playing players will havetheir balances.

[0058] Once again the machine limits will be updated each round, and thewinning prizes will be updated each round.

[0059] The foregoing description of the embodiments of the invention hasbeen presented for the purposes of illustration and description. It isnot intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the preciseform disclosed. It should be appreciated that many modifications andvariations are possible in light of the above teaching. It is intendedthat the scope of the invention be limited not by this detaileddescription, but rather by the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for enabling at least one online playerto become the “casino house” and play against at least one other user,comprising the steps of: i. offering a qualifying player the ability toopen and offer for other players a casino table game, such that saidplayer becomes the “casino house”; ii. giving to said qualifying playerthe “house” odds while the said qualifying player is operating as the“house”; and iii. playing as the “house” against at least one otherplayer.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said casino table is a slotmachine, such that said qualifying player views said slot machine whileanother user plays with said slot machine against said player.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein said qualifying player's “house” bettinglimits depend on the factors selected from the group of previous playinghistory of player, current cash position of player and qualifying pointsof player, such that said factors are calculated and displayed on a realtime basis before each round is played.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein said qualifying player's odds depend on the factors selectedfrom the group of previous playing history of said player, current cashposition of said player and qualifying points of said player.
 5. Themethod of claim 1, wherein said playing as the “house” by each playerfurther comprises: a. earning credit points for each round played, byeach player; b. qualifying to be the “house”; c. offering the casino tosaid player; d. inviting other players to play against said player; e.playing against the (original) player.
 6. The method of claim 5, furthercomprising: i. deducting points from the player (house) during play; ii.disqualifying player as the house; and iii. relegating player to statusof a regular player.
 7. The method of claim 5, wherein said offering the“casino house” to a qualifying player further comprises providingalternative playing options selected from the group comprising placing astop loss on said players account, requesting to cease being the houseafter winning or losing a certain amount, requesting to cease being thehouse after a certain number of rounds have been played, requesting tocease being the house after a certain amount of time has lapsed,customizing appearance of said house, customizing games played in saidhouse, customizing number of players participating in said house andcustomizing the look and feel of said house.
 8. The method of claim 7,wherein said games are selected from the group consisting of Black Jack,Caribbean Stud Poker, Progressive Caribbean Poker, Baccarrat, Craps,slot machines, video poker, poker, roulette, pai gow, craps, war, keno,red dog, let it ride, sic bo, and scratch cards.
 9. The method of claim1, wherein said playing as the “house” further comprises running acommon accumulating and reducing jackpot for all of the “house”activity.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein said playing as the “house”further enables a plurality of players to become the “house”concurrently, and play against at least one other player simultaneouslyusing the identical gaming software and hardware and administering,operating, maintenance and management system.
 11. A method for enablingat least one online gambler to become the “casino house” for a limitedperiod of time and play against at least one other user in eventsselected from the selection of casino table games, machine games and inthe entire “casino”, such that the gamblers are not required to operate,administer, maintain or manage the event, comprising the steps of: i.offering a qualifying gambler the ability to open and offer for at leastone other gambler a casino table game, such that said player becomes“house”, and dealer; ii. giving to said qualifying player the “house”odds while he said qualifying gambler is operating as the “house”; andiii. playing as the “house” against at least one other gambler.